


Footprints in the Snow

by beautifulmidnight



Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse)
Genre: Christmas, F/M, Holidays, Marriage Proposal, Romance, Snow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-18
Updated: 2014-02-18
Packaged: 2018-01-12 23:42:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1204843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beautifulmidnight/pseuds/beautifulmidnight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After returning from buying a Christmas tree, Leon has something he would like to ask Claire.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Footprints in the Snow

**Author's Note:**

> This is the sequel to 'Jingle All The Way.' Reading 'Jingle All The Way' doesn't need to be read to understand this fic.
> 
> I wanted to post this at Christmas but lacked the time.
> 
> Russian translation by [Bella Pierce](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Bella_Pierce/pseuds/Bella_Pierce): [click here](https://ficbook.net/readfic/4395855)  
> No other permissions for translations have been given!!

The snow was falling softly, the delicate flakes swirling and dancing in the wind before landing on the ground. Diamond patterns of frost were etched on the window panes and Claire traced the points with her fingertip. Outside she watched her boyfriend Leon Kennedy and her brother, Chris Redfield, pull a Christmas tree off the roof of Leon’s Hummer. Every now and again one of them would get a good grip on the tree only to have it slip. Each time this happened, they would fall to the snow on their butts. Claire giggled when Leon slipped and knocked into Chris, causing them both to fall to the ground.

“Sorry Rookie!” Chris apologized, getting to his feet and dusting the snow off his pants.

“Forget it Redfield,” Leon sighed. He tossed another load of snow on his friend.

Claire laughed out loud watching the two help each other up. She was glad she wasn’t out there in the cold, falling into drifts of snow on her rear.

“What’s so funny?” Jill asked coming up behind her. She held two steaming mugs of hot cocoa in her hands, each one filled to the brim with marshmallows. Claire smiled at the sight of the cheery red mugs with the Santa Claus’ on them and took one gratefully from her best friend.

“Just the guys,” she shook her head.

“Oh,” Jill rolled her eyes. “They haven’t gotten that gigantic tree off the car yet?”

“Nope.”

“Boys,” she scoffed. “You’d think they’d want to get the job done fast so they can come back in where it’s warm,” she said before taking a sip of her cocoa.

“It’s funny,” Claire replied as she took a seat on Jill’s couch.

“It’s pathetic,” Jill countered.

Claire ignored her best friend’s comment and gazed at the empty spot where the Christmas tree would go. Chris and Leon had gone to a tree lot where one could cut down their own tree. Claire suspected they bought a large one on purpose as the tree was so big it looked like it could barely fit in the front yard let alone Jill’s living room. Claire and Jill knew they’d be spending the whole evening trimming it and cutting away unnecessary branches. 

Claire still remembered the look on Jill’s face when Leon’s Hummer pulled up in the driveway with the tree strapped to the roof. She was so shocked she couldn't speak.

“I think the guys are coming in. Let’s get ready,” Jill smiled through gritted teeth.

Claire suppressed a smile. This would be fun.

~

 

The hand-painted ornaments and antique decorations, along with the vintage string of Christmas lights, gave the tree its own unique charm. And with the loads of brightly wrapped packages exploding with bouncy ribbons and springy bows underneath it, it created a picturesque scene that Claire relished. A gold star was atop the tree and it sparkled and glittered even in the dimmest of light. It was the star that she and Chris always put on their own Christmas tree, but since Chris, Jill, and Claire were living together now, it only made sense that it would belong on Jill’s tree. Claire dug it out of her storage unit and gave it to Jill. It symbolized hope, love, and faith to Claire; that even in the darkest of moments there was always something to look forward to, to hold onto.

It didn’t matter that the tree took up the whole left side of the living room and tried to extend through the window. Claire thought it was beautiful.

Leon and Chris had been shoveling the driveway while she and Jill decorated the tree. The snow didn’t seem to be stopping but Jill still had to go shopping in the morning and wanted her driveway clear.

“Hey you two!” Chris opened the front door and let a burst of cold air into the room. Claire instinctively reached for the afghan that graced Jill’s couch and pulled it around her.

“Shut the damn door, Chris!” Jill grumbled. “It’s cold!”

Leon stepped in after Chris and closed the door. Claire looked at her boyfriend and saw a light dusting of flakes covered his hair and eyelashes. His cheeks were slightly pink from his physical exertion, and she found herself blushing when he shrugged off his black leather jacket revealing his well-defined muscles. He flipped his hair and the flakes disintegrated.

“I shut it Jill,” Leon announced.

“So is my driveway clear or what?” she grinned.

“Clear,” he said. “You can pull your car out now.”

“Great! One of these days I’m going to buy a Hummer just like you, Kennedy…with the seat warmers and everything,” she said dreamily.

Leon laughed and made himself comfortable next to Claire on the couch. He snuggled up to her under the blanket and kissed her cheek. Claire shot a glance to her brother and nearly choked on her chocolate. The look Chris was giving Leon was deadly. If the agent knew how Chris was staring at him, he didn’t let on or seem to care.

“After dinner there’s something I want to show you,” he whispered to her.

Confused, but definitely interested, Claire nodded. “Sure.”

“You guys hungry? I’m going to order some pizza,” Chris pulled his cell phone out. “Extra cheese and veggies on yours Claire?”

“Yeah, sure,” she replied, not even paying attention to him.

Jill poked Chris and shook her head, pushing him out of the living room. “Give them some alone time. They hardly ever see each other. You’re a mood killer, Redfield.”

Claire cuddled up to Leon, resting her head on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. She shut her eyes and sighed in contentment. She’d take a nap before dinner. 

The last thing she remembered before she drifted to sleep was Leon removing her mug of cocoa from her hands and kissing her forehead.

~

“Ugh, I’m stuffed,” Claire breathed. She wiped her lips with her napkin and balled it up, tossing it on her now empty plate. “I think I gained five pounds!”

“Doubt it,” Leon smiled. “Ready for a walk?”

“Are you kidding me?”

“My sister’s not a dog, Rookie,” Chris said between bites of pizza.

“I know that,” Leon sighed.

“Go for a walk, Claire. You’ll feel better,” Jill urged, winking.

“Uhm, okay,” Claire relented, wondering why Jill was insisting on her going out. “Just let me put on my boots and coat.”

“Jill, it’s a fucking blizzard outside! Who wants to walk out in that?” Chris protested.

Jill punched her boyfriend in the shoulder and gave him a dirty look.

“OW! What the fuck, Jilly!” he rubbed his shoulder where she hit him. “That hurt!”

“Yeah, it hurt my hand,” she retorted. “Your arms are like rocks.”

“No, Jill. The rocks are in his head,” Leon quipped.

Claire giggled and hurriedly laced up her boots and zipped up her down jacket. She pulled her red hair out of the ponytail she had it styled in and let it flow loosely down her shoulders. She put on her furry white earmuffs and fat gloves. She’d be warm, no matter where Leon decided to take her.

She met Leon at the front door and they exited the house, arm in arm.

“So, what is it you wanted to show me?” she asked, watching her breath mingle with the falling snow. It wasn’t quite dark yet, but the sun was setting fast.

“You’ll see,” he said cryptically.

“Well, whatever it is, I can’t wait to see it.”

They walked past Jill’s neighborhood and out into a forest that was across the road. A small stream with a wooden bridge crossing over it soon came into view and Claire gasped at the sight. It was beautiful, with trees on both sides and the water frozen into a glimmering sheen of ice. Dead leaves were suspended in the ice like ancient fossils displayed behind glass in a museum.

“Isn’t it pretty? I found it when I went to go find Mrs. Swanson’s dog.”

He stopped walking when they reached the middle of the bridge. He leaned over the edge of the railing and smiled. Claire’s heart stopped and without thinking, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him.

“It’s incredible,” she beamed. Her gray-blue eyes glowed with excitement. “I’m glad that silly dog ran away, otherwise you never would’ve found this amazing place.”

He returned her smile. “Claire, I wanted to ask you something,” he bowed his head to avoid her gaze and stuffed his hands in his pockets.

“Leon, what is it? You can ask me anything,” she told him, suddenly concerned.

He kicked at a pebble and snow exploded out from under his foot. The small rock skittered across the bridge before crashing into the frozen stream below.

“Leon, you’re scaring me. What is it?”

Before she could do or say anything else, he was down on one knee in front of her, a black velvet box open in the palm of his hand. A very large antique diamond ring was nestled inside.

“Claire Redfield, will you marry me?”

Stunned, she opened her mouth but nothing came out. Worry flooded his face, and his hands started to shake.

“Claire, say something. Please.”

“I—I--Y—Yes I will!” she blurted.

Leon smiled in relief and hurriedly ripped off her glove to put the ring on her finger. As he did so, Claire’s line of vision fell on the footprints in the snow.

Leon’s prints were a little ahead of hers, but they were close in proximity to one another. They’d always been close, and seeing the prints side by side was a reminder of how just how much closer they had gotten in recent months. Harvardville only happened last year, but ever since…they’d been inseparable. It was destiny, her and Leon being together. To think they never would’ve met had she not gone looking for Chris all those years ago…

“I love you Claire Redfield,” Leon pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead.

“And I love you, Leon Scott Kennedy,” she replied, burying her face against his chest.

“Merry Christmas,” he whispered.


End file.
